- The people at prayer.
- The purpose in prayer.
- The power of prayer.
Scripture Reading:
Acts 12:1-19 NIV [1] It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. [2] He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. [3] When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. [4] After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover. [5] So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. [6] The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. [7] Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists. [8] Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. [9] Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. [10] They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him. [11] Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.” [12] When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. [13] Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. [14] When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!” [15] “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.” [16] But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. [17] Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,” he said, and then he left for another place. [18] In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. [19] After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed. Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.
Introduction
This is the first sermon in a four sermon series titled “Waging Successful Spiritual Warfare with the Help that Comes Through Prayer. This series will emphasize the place prayer should have in the life of each follower of Jesus.
There is no more dramatic story in the New Testament concerning partnership and power in prayer than the record given us in Acts 12 the first 19 verses of which was our scripture this morning. What this scripture talks about is believers coming together as partners in prayer and the power that results from that kind of partnership.
In this story King Herod represents the work of the devil, against the work of God. Over against this opposition, however, God’s people pray for His intervention to stop the devil's work. In other words, whenever Satan comes in like a flood, as it says in Isaiah 59:19 “the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him”.
Isaiah 59:19 NKJV So shall they fear The name of the Lord from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.
The enemy’s purpose, Satan's purpose, is to silence the voice of the gospel, but God’s answer to Satan’s attempts is always the mighty power of prayer.
This is why this particular miraculous intervention is preserved for us in scripture. We can read it, study it, and learn the principles that determine victory over every attempt of Satan to stop the redemptive purposes of God.
I want to talk about three important features of this particular prayer meeting.
The people at prayer
The purpose in prayer
The power of prayer
Let’s start by looking at our text for today,
Acts 12:11-12 NKJV [11] And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.” [12] So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.
I. First let’s take a look at the people that were praying.
As we have already seen, Satan had done his best to incarcerate Peter and to silence the message of life in the city of Jerusalem, but God responded by drawing together a group of men and women to pray. There were three classes of people present at that prayer meeting.
The Mary class
The Rhoda class
The many (spell it out) class
A. Let’s start with the “Mary” class.
Acts 12:12 NKJV [12] So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.
Mary represents the influential people.
The prayer meeting was at her house. Since Mary owned a house it appears that she was a woman of comparative wealth and influence. The house was obviously roomy enough to be used as a meeting place for members of the church in Jerusalem.
Thank God for the Marys of church history! Thank God for the Marys of today who make their homes available for Bible study, prayer, and Christian fellowship. No one can read the New Testament without observing the central place the home has had in the growth of the Christian church.
B. Then there was the “Rhoda” class.
Acts 12:13 NKJV And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer.
In the NIV says that Rhoda was a servant.
Acts 12:13 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door.
Rhoda, whose name means “rose,” represents the
less prominent people, the ordinary people, the less influential people, the rank-and-file people, plain old regular folk.
She was just a servant, but what a fragrance her name and life have given the Christian church throughout the centuries. God certainly uses all people for His purposes, the influential people and the just plain old ordinary folk. The prayers of Rhoda were just as effective and acceptable as the prayers of Mary.
C. Then there was the “many” class.
Let’s go back to Acts 12:12 NKJV So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.
The “many'' represent the inconspicuous people. These are the unnamed, regular folk who hear Jesus gladly,
who respond to his message, and become part of the body of Christ, the church.
Since the beginning of the church and down through the centuries, most people in the church of Jesus Christ have been part of the “many” class, and this is how it will be until the church is complete and Christ comes back..
II. So we see the categories of people in that Acts prayer meeting; the Mary class, the Rhoda class and the many class. They were all together as partners in prayer. These are the same categories of people who make up the body of Chtist who come together as partners to pray together today.
Now let's look at the purpose of that prayer meeting in Acts as well as our purpose in partnering in prayer.
We cannot read Luke’s account here without being impressed with two aspects that make partnering in prayer significant. These two aspects are unity and urgency.
A. Unity in prayer.
Acts 12:12 NKJV [12] So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.
Whatever differences might have separated the people involved at that prayer meeting, were now completely lost in the unity of the purpose of them coming together which was praying for Peter’s deliverance.
The secret to partnering in prayer is to be persistent, and fervent until an answer is received.
Unity is what Jesus was talking about when He said in
Matthew 18:19-20 NKJV [19] “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. [20] For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”
And the psalmist reminds us that it is good and pleasant for people to dwell together in unity because it’s there, when believers are unified, that there God pours out the precious ointment of his Spirit and the Lord showers His blessings upon us.
Psalms 133:1-3 NKJV [1] Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! [2] It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. [3] It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing— Life forevermore.
That kind of prayer is marked by determination, faith, and often, a sense of urgency.
B. There was both unity and urgency in that prayer meeting..
Acts 12:5 NKJV Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.
The Greek word used here for constant implies intense, fervent prayer. This shows the depth of their concern and faith. Their prayer was sustained and persistent intercession.
The united prayer of the church, when we become partners in prayer, demonstrates the strength that comes from collective faith.
Our persistent prayer is a testament to our unwavering faith in God's power to intervene. It teaches us the importance of perseverance in prayer and it serves as a powerful reminder of the effectiveness of prayer. It encourages us to pray fervently for one another and to trust in God's ability to answer our prayers. When people pray like this, something is bound to happen.
III. Prayer is powerful.
Peter had been cast into prison. Prior to Peter’s arrest, James had been beheaded.
Acts 12:1-2 NIV [1] It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. [2] He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
The Christians were probably very apprehensive at that time, so they prayed and they prayed and they prayed. As a result of their united fervent prayer the undeniable power of God was revealed.
The entire Jerusalem church was united in prayer for Peter and the result demonstrated the power of corporate prayer. The church was together praying.
When Rhoda reported that Peter was alive and was standing outside the door, the people who were praying thought she was nuts, out of her mind.
Acts 12:14-15 NKJV [14] When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate. [15] But they said to her, “You are beside yourself!” Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, “It is his angel.”
These people obviously believed in the power of prayer, because they were there praying, but I doubt that they thought God would deliver Peter the way that it happened. They may have thought that Peter would be arraigned before the magistrate the next day and then cautioned and released, which would have certainly been an answer to their prayers.
But God always works far above all that we could ever ask or imagine.
Ephesians 3:20-21 NKJV says [20] Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, [21] to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
God has limitless the ability to surpass our greatest hopes and desires. His power is infinitely greater than anything we can imagine or request. God's power exceeded their expectations. God's intervention and power was beyond their imagination because Peter was there in person that very night, the night of the prayer meeting.
Acts 12:16-17 NKJV [16] Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. [17] But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Go, tell these things to James and to the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place.
Everyone there then knew that God had answered prayer in a miraculous way. It was undeniable. Prayer is incredibly powerful. It's a direct line to God Almighty the Creator, Prayer is a channel through which we can access God's limitless power and love.
Why is prayer so powerful?
Prayer fosters a deep, personal relationship with God Almighty.
Consistent prayer nurtures our spiritual lives and deepens our faith.
Prayer can transform individuals, communities, and even nations.
Through prayer, we can advocate for others and bring about positive change.
Prayer provides wisdom, direction, and peace in life's challenges.
Conclusion
Today, God is looking for the Mary's, the Rhoda's, and the many who will learn of and experience the undeniable power of partnering in prayer.
Let’s pray
Heavenly Father, we thank You for this time of reflection and inspiration. Your Word has ignited a flame of prayer within our hearts.
Grant us the courage and persistence to seek Your face continually. Empower us to pray without ceasing, trusting in Your promises. May our prayers be filled with gratitude, humility, and faith.
Equip us to intercede for one another, carrying the burdens of our brothers and sisters. And Lord, may our prayers align with Your perfect will. As we leave this place today, send us forth as Your ambassadors of prayer, equipped and empowered to intercede for the needs of the world. In Jesus' name, we pray.
